Thursday, January 6, 2011

Hope and her sister Lizzie have always looked out for each other. Since their father died, and their mother is fairly absent, they protect one another and provide comfort and companionship. But, when Lizzie is institutionalized because of a suicide attempt, Hope is devastated and determined to figure out why. What she uncovers, one piece at a time, rips her apart. But, she has to figure all of it out and be able to talk about it in order to save Lizzie.

Things I Liked:
Gorgeous, rending, painful, enlightening, real, bitter, absolutely heartbreaking. So well done, so awful, yet so beautiful. I don't read a lot of free verse novels, but this one might be enough to get me reading more. The ending made it all worth the pain of reading it. Hope was very aptly named and I love the part she played in the book. I loved the sisters and their relationship - to take care of each other was the most important thing. I also really liked how Hope was dealing with all of these tragic and difficult things, but still having relatively normal teen experiences - kissing games and parties and liking boys. It kept things from becoming too dark and too hard. Another amazing, difficult, beautiful book for Williams. Not for nothing was this on my favorites of 2010 list. Some favorite parts:

Don't let them take me,Hope,Liz says,don't let them take me.Her voicepierces me in the chest,right under the breastbone.And my heart, right then and there,rips in half.I can feel the weepy tear in it. p 50

I remember how,when I was little,I had thought she was pretty.The prettiest momma in all the world.Now everything about her is ugly.And I wonder,will I ever feel the sameabout her again? p 447

Things I Didn't Like:
Don't expect to get through this one without your tissues and a broken heart. If you are feeling sad already, pick up something light-hearted first.Read-alikes:
Reminded me of Waiting for Normal by Leslie ConnorAlso, Everything is Fine and This is What I Did: by Ann Dee EllisProbably like Ellen Hopkins' books (though I haven't read any) BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:s-factor: !
a fewmrg-factor: X
some very disturbing parts, nothing graphicv-factor: ->
a few things, some mature incidents and attempted suicideOverall rating: *****

Why is it that some of the most powerful books are also the hardest to read?

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